An open and shut case for Dec. 6, 2012

Local Restaurant Notes

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Coastal Coffee Bar, a new business at 748 S.C. 544, serves gourmet coffee drinks, chai, cold beverages, breakfast sandwiches, muffins, bagels and donuts. Husband and wife owners, Todd Barolet and Erika Barolet, are eager for art students attending nearby Coastal Carolina University or Horry-Georgetown Technical College to bring in their art, which will be displayed in the restaurant and be available for purchase. The Barolets will not take a commission; they just want art on the walls. Coastal Coffee Bar is open from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays. The number is 655-6785.

R&R Bar & Grill opened Nov. 12 in the former Angelo’s Steak & Pasta site at 2011 S. Kings Highway. Its owners are Bill Mattress and Angelo Antonucci, and the restaurant has a menu heavy on appetizers and sandwiches. It also has a sports bar, game room with 10 pool tables and entertainment lounge. R&R is open daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., and the number is 213-1705. Check out our Happy Hour Heaven review of R&R Bar and Grill on page 19.

A new restaurant called Scotty’s All American Grill opened in November at the food court at Inlet Square Mall. Owner John Scott is serving a full day of meals, from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and from noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.

Joseph Buondonno and Marion Buondonno opened the Grilled Cheese & Crab Cake Co. in January 2012 at 2520 U.S. 17 Business S. in Garden City Beach, and now the couple has sold the restaurant to Ryan Chodnicki, a 32-year-old Maryland native with many years’ restaurant experience. Chodnicki says he is not eliminating any of the menu items, which include gooey-thick grilled cheese sandwiches and lots of crab dishes, but he does plan to soon start offering party holiday platters. Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and from 3-6 p.m. there’s happy hour when all beers and wines are half-price. The restaurant is in the middle of the Oasis Plaza shopping center, and the number is 947-0855.

Officials with Burroughs & Chapin Company, Inc., broke ground on a 10,000-square-foot shopping center next to Coastal Grand Mall that will include a Chipotle Mexican Grill. The shopping center will be adjacent to the mall near the entrance to Pine Island Road, and it is expected to open in the summer of 2013.

At the end of November, Dan McGraw opened Tokyos Hibachi, located in the J. Mike Plaza at 8724 S.C. 707, near St. James High School. The restaurant was formerly Lucky Dog Grille and Delaney’s Dog Haus. The dishes are all $10 or less and include hibachi bowls, wings, sushi and more. Toykos Hibachi is open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and the number is 215-6828.

Closed Restaurants

In February 2011 Silvio Balistreri and Mona Peppers opened a Quiznos restaurant at 3735 Oleander Dr. in Myrtle Beach; it closed in early November.

Berni’s 501, owned by Nate Palmer, moved from downtown Conway to 2246 U.S. 501 E. in Conway in the fall of 2011. It has been closed since soon after Halloween.

Village Café at 828 Surfside Dr. in Surfside Beach closed in November, and it is soon reopening as Julie’s Beach Café.

Mykonos, a Greek/Italian restaurant at 1002 29th Ave. N. in Myrtle Beach, has been closed since Nov. 12. In November a former manager won a lawsuit against Mykonos’ owners for $7,500 in unpaid wages. A similar lawsuit for unpaid wages filed by the restaurant’s opening chef has not yet received a court date.

The pink building where burgers were served on the upper level, Hamburger Heaven at 406 Sea Mountain Highway in North Myrtle Beach, closed for good on Oct. 25.

Hog’s Hickory House BBQ at 2153 S.C. 544 opened Oct. 6, 2011, and as of Nov. 27 the restaurant was closed, and the phone is disconnected.

Restaurant News

SeaBlue at 503 U.S. 17 N. in North Myrtle Beach has launched lunch service with a lunchtime menu that will evolve with fresh seasonal foods, but for now choices include Charred Caesar Salad, Cream of Mushroom Soup with black truffle oil, Braised Short Rib Dip, Maine Lobster BLT, Lump Crab Cake, Pumpkin and Sage Ravioli and SeaBlue’s Shrimp and Grits with goat cheese, prosciutto and tomato-garlic butter. Lunch is available from noon to 3 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays, and dinner service is 5-10 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and 5-11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. The phone number is 249-8800.

Mickey Calderiso, owner of On the ½ Shell at 4500 U.S. 17 Bypass in Murrells Inlet, was hoping to open his new restaurant called Mickey’s Tavern on U.S. 17 Business by Halloween, but the extensive remodeling he has planned required extra permits that took a while to obtain. Now he is on track again and looking forward to opening Mickey’s Tavern in late February or March. In the meantime, Calderiso has announced a $5 food menu at On the ½ Shell through Dec. 31.

Response was so positive for the trial Sunday lunch buffet at Angelo’s Steak & Pasta, owner Angelo Antonucci has decided to keep having it from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Sunday. The price is $10 per person for dishes such as Frittatas, Bagels and Lox, Biscuits and Gravy and Cinnamon Rolls. Also, from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays, Jazz Etc. is performing in the Angelo’s lounge. Angelo’s is at 2311 S. Kings Highway, and the number is 626-2800.

The Myrtle Beach Area Hospitality Association acquired coastal Uncorked Food, Wine & Spirits Festival, a three-year-old spring event that has seen many changes in its attempt to cater to wine-and-dining tourists. The group’s president and CEO, Stephen Greene, says the festival will change to become a year-round brand for many food events, and that the only public funding the new group will seek is $80,000 in Myrtle Beach accommodations tax money. A “core week” for Coastal Uncorked may be during the first two weeks of June, Greene said, to replace a lag in hotel bookings created when the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce did away with the 60-year-old Sun Fun Festival.

Approximately 20 local artists will have their works on display from 7-10 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 7, at Travinia Italian Kitchen at The Market Common in Myrtle Beach. The evening includes refreshments and live jazz. A recommended donation is $10, and proceeds will benefit The Roundtable Art Group’s, “…efforts to promote the arts through art shows and workshops along the Grand Strand.” Travinia is at 4011 Deville St., and the number is 233-8500.

Holiday Specials

Van Gogh Vodka and Jordan’s Skinny Mixes invite only ladies to New York Prime the evening of Dec. 10 for a Skinny Cosmo evening. For $20 plus tax and tip, the culinary entertainment includes four courses and five cocktails. New York Prime is at 405 28th Ave. N. in Myrtle Beach, and the number is 448-8081.

Supper is free from 2-8 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 15 at Lumpy’s restaurant at 9259 Ocean Highway in Pawleys Island, if you bring and donate new or slightly worn coats or jackets (hats and gloves are also welcome), to help keep local children warm this winter. Santa Claus will come check out what’s to eat between 3 and 5 p.m., and the family-friendly event will include music and prizes. Food that will be served includes Baked Ziti, Ham, Barbecue Chicken, Eggplant Parmesan, Italian Noodle Soup, Chili, Sweet Potatoes, Potato Salad, Green Beans, and various desserts and salads.

The Myrtle Beach Chapter of the American Culinary Federation is having a certified Hot Food Competition Jan. 29-31 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. The Wild Card Category is a 105-minute mystery box competition when chefs will prepare six matching meals of protein, starch and vegetable, and they won’t know until their time slot begins if they’ll have pork, chicken, beef or seafood to use. Also, the competition includes separate events in cold food categories A, B and C. Register at www.hmrsss.com.

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